February factory orders rose less than expected to weigh the markets down during the midday with the Dow losing 44 points to 13,220. Nasdaq slipped 3 points to 3116.

On the upside

Conn's (Nasdaq: CONN) reversed year ago losses to post a better than expected profit for the fourth quarter and lifted its guidance for the full year 2013.

EnteroMedics (Nasdaq: ETRM) made its first commercial shipment of the Maestro Rechargeable System to Australia and announced a multi-year deal to distribute the system to Gulf Coast Countries including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.